### 280

The tavern’s taproom is crowded with traders and fishermen who are taking refuge from the storms. They have come here to drown their sorrows in ale. Several are very intoxicated and others, who have imbibed too much of the innkeeper’s strong brew, have passed out on the taproom’s sawdust-covered floor. The innkeeper calls for order but his demand is ignored. It is not until he bangs a brass gong three times with the base of a tankard that the patrons finally settle down. It is time for a riddle!

The innkeeper’s wife, Li-liu, distributes envelopes, slips of paper, and sticks of charcoal to customers who are not too drunk to remember how to use them.

If you have visited the Ferry House Inn on the quayside in Valus, turn to 62.

If you have not, turn to 314.